I Am Wandering
by Miz-KTakase
Summary: Tales of the Bizarre #58. An I Am Frankie Bizarre fanfic, retelling the very last "The Twilight Zone" taped episode of the original series. A robot finds love, while finding a new hit song, but the song recollects his past... and his death. Rated T for mild violence.


Far away, in a countryside road, on a brisk autumn day, a boy with a gray jacket and jeans, with black hair, was walking down the road. He was holding a guitar, with his name embossed and written on "_Andrew LaPierre_". He was walking down the road, until he spotted a small shack. He approached the shack, as a boy in light brown hair was sitting in the counter. He then said, holding his guitar, over his shoulder, "Hey. You like here?"

The boy said, "No. Just work here for my father. So what can I do for you?"

Andrew said to him, "Listen, man. Oh…"

He walked around the store and saw different musical instruments on display. He was amazed, as he saw an old piano, bass fiddles, guitars, and other musical items. Andrew said, "Dude, you got some nice merchandise. That's sweet."

The boy said, "Don't touch anything, unless you want to buy it."

"Hey, man, I'm alright. So, uh, you got a name?"

"Cole."

Andrew laughed, "Yeah, I'm gonna call you Cole Slaw. But I'll tell you one thing, you got a swinging shop there; every instrument cut from RadioShack to Best Buy."

He introduced himself, "Andrew LaPierre."

Cole shook his hand and said, "Never heard of you."

Andrew let go and said, "Okay… What do you have for me?"

Cole said nothing, as Andrew replied, "Okay… Lemme ask another question. Is this the place? I heard from a friend of mine in Sepulveda High that this is where you get authentic musical instruments at a low price. Is this the place, or not?"

He sighed, as he didn't get a response. He told him, "Look, if you got nothing, don't hold out on me. If you got a good song that can hit the Top 50s, I can pay you top billing. Ah, but it has to be authentic. I don't trust those phonies in the studios, writing bootlegs and other junk."

Cole said, "No. No song, sorry."

Andrew said, "Ahhhh, who was it, that Harlem Shake guy? I know what you're thinking… They're going to steal you blind, for stealing your song, if got one. All you got to do is P.D. it."

"P.D.?"

"Public Domain. You gotta give with your original tune, and keep it. What I mean is that you got no rights. They're gonna take you song, in public domain, and they're going to steal you blind, taking away money. And then how are you going to live?"

Cole replied, "Are you here to buy something, or lecture me on songs?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Well, I got nothing on what they'd want."

"I'll pay you in top dollar… Benjamins…" Andrew dropped a $100 bill and demanded, "Now."

Cole pushed it back and said, "No. Nobody even comes here."

Andrew chuckled and said, "Yeah… You said it. But I'll tell you what…"

He approached an acoustic guitar and said, "Suppose I take one of your guitars, we could talk a little, Cole Slaw?"

"You have to buy it, first."

Andrew takes the guitar and returns to the counter, and replied, "Right. I will buy it, get to know one another, and first thing you know, you can move your lips, right?"

He strummed his guitar, as he heard a female sound, humming. He walked outside, and then asked, "Who was that?"

Cole didn't reply, but Andrew stepped out, hearing a haunting humming tune. He smiled and said, "Yeah. This must be the place, hear that? A beautiful voice, over there."

Cole said, "I hear nothing."

"That's because you're tone deaf."

He gave him the $100 bill and said, "Here. How much?"

Cole didn't reply, but took the bill. He said, "It's yours."

Andrew walked out and said, "Thanks."

He stepped out and headed off into the forest. He decided to follow the voice of the singing woman. As he walked into the huge thick forest, far away in a small hill, he passed a gravestone. He felt his neck and groaned. He decided to journey onwards. On the gravestone, it said "_Andrew LaPierre – The Wandering Android_".

* * *

_Mr. Andrew LaPierre – a fledgling singing sensation, made of metal, rubber, and cloth, searching for a song, is about to answer the age-old question: Can a man be in two places at the same time? As far as his song is concerned, we can assure you that he'll find everything he's looking for, though the lyrics may not be all to his liking. But that's sometimes the case – when the words and music are recorded, not just in Andrew LaPierre's computerized mind… but in the "**Tales of the Bizarre**"._

* * *

**_Tales of the Bizarre #58:  
I am… …Wandering_**

* * *

**_Disclaimer: _**_For the first time ever, I am doing a fanfic, based from a show from Nickelodeon. Also, I do not own "I Am Frankie", in case you didn't notice. The story you are seeing is a loosely remade parody of a "Twilight Zone" episode, and the characters from "I Am Frankie" are purely fictitious, and does not reflect the actors portraying them._

* * *

Andrew continued walking, as the humming continued. He stopped by a tree, wilted and dead, and saw a small piece of wood from above, stuck in the branches. He picked up a small pebble and knocked the wooden piece off of the tree. As he continued wandering in the thick forest, looking for his song, and the source of the humming, a girl in black attire was watching from afar, with long brown hair and an emotionless face. He stopped, and turned to find the girl, but she disappeared. A crow cawed, and Andrew shooed the blackbird, fluttering off into the distance. He sighed, and then sat down on a log, taking a break from finding the source. He also heard a noise. It was the sound of a bird, cawing in the trees. Andrew rushed to the source of the sound, only it was nowhere to be found. He decided to give up and take a break. With his guitar in his hand, and a tape recorder he had with him, he decided to do a little practice session. As he sat down, a girl was walking down the path, spotting a huge bush. She then walked to the bush and spotted him. Andrew stopped, as the girl, dressed in a blue blouse and white pants, was viewing Andrew's music.

"That is a nice song you are playing." She said.

He asked, "Who are you, babe?"

She introduced herself, "Frankie Gaines."

He smiled, removing the tape recorder from over his shoulder, "Oh, that is a lovely name… and a lovely song."

He strummed his guitar and said, "So, how does your song go?"

Frankie went to him and said, "That is a secret. It belongs to someone else."

Andrew asked, "WHO? Who owns that song?"

She replied, "Oh, only me… Dayton Reyes, Cole Reyes… and the Rayford Brothers."

He smirked, "Cole… … … Oh, yeah! You know the boy from the music shop!"

She responded, "That's right."

He said, "Well, I gotta be honest with you, Frankie. Nobody can buy that song. It's public domain! Why would they let you keep it a secret?"

She replied, "Dayton Reyes made me promise not to sing it to you… likewise the Rayford Brothers."

He got up and barked, "Oh, they _did, _did they? Which of them do you want me to meet? I bet I can talk this Dayton girl into-."

"She has nothing to do with it. She promised me not to sing it, in front of anybody… Only me."

She turned around and said, "Sorry, sir, I must go."

He held her arm and called back to her, "Wait, wait, wait! Don't go. Listen to me. Come right over here."

They sat down, as Andrew asked for one chorus of the song she's forbidden to sing. But Frankie was too shy. She was given the guitar, and then she started to hold the guitar, and Andrew said, "Okay! Now listen, I want you to play that song, just as you would sing it, as if we were the same two people, and the _only _two people here."

Frankie nodded, and agreed, "Yes. I suppose."

He asked, "You ever played one of these before?"

"Yes, I have."

"Good, now play it."

Frankie strummed the guitar slowly and started to sing in a deep tune:  
_He said… Come wander with me, love…  
Come wander with me…  
Away from this sad world…  
Come wander… with me…_

_He came from the sunset…  
He came from the sea…  
He came from the sorrow  
and can love only me…_

**_NOTE: _**_"Come Wander with Me" written and composed by Jeff Alexander and Anthony Wilson. The song was used in various events, including "Day of the Evil Gun" and "The Brown Bunny"._

Andrew smiled, "Nice."

Frankie gave back the guitar and said, "Thanks. But I got to go."

He stopped her and said, "No, wait, don't go!"

"I'm sorry, but they'll be coming for me."

"Well, when can I see you again? Tonight? Tomorrow?"

"You cannot ever see me again. Never. I'm bespoke."

"Bespoke. So what? No, you're Frankie. I'm Andrew LaPierre."

"You got it all wrong, Andrew LaPierre. I am bespoke. I am, how you call it, an android, like you. Custom-made, and can only sing this song."

"No, no, you are missing the point. I know what _bespoke _means."

He said to a shaken Frankie, "Lemme spell it out for you. I need this song. It sounds great. But I don't care what Cole Slaw, Dayton, _or _those Rayfords want with it, but that song was meant for me, and I need it!"

He demanded that he wanted from her, as he offered his price, "I'll pay you fifty dollars. A hundred? A percentage?"

She shook her head, as he pleaded, "I'm _not _going to harm your song, Frankie Gaines."

"But it belongs to someone else!"

"Then they don't want it."

"It can't be bought, Andrew LaPierre. Not this way."

"Honey, _anything _can be bought. It's all about haggling. You kept lowering or hiking up the price, until you get the right amount on the price. It's a buyer's market. All I am doing is taking your song, out of respect, and transpose it. Here!"

He sat her down, as he held his guitar, and explained, "Lemme show you. How I sing it, you have to sing in a different key."

He strummed his guitar, and sang in a different tune:  
_Come wander with me, love…  
Come wander with me…  
Away from this sad world…  
Come wander… with me…_

He started to hum, as he was composing his version of the song. Frankie stopped him and asked, "Are you asking to come with you, Andrew LaPierre?"

Andrew smiled, "Yeah, I-. Wait, what?"

"You'd really do that for me?"

"Far from this world, Frankie."

"And you'll love only me? And only me?"

Andrew smiled and said, "Only _you_, Frankie. Only _you_."

They held hands and leaned closer. Frankie closed her eyes, and then kissed Andrew on the lips. After that, the two androids share a kiss together, as they would become boyfriend and girlfriend… unbeknownst to them is a figure in the black clothing, similar to Frankie, watching from far away, in the dense fog.

_Oh, where is the wanderer…  
Who wandered this way…  
He's past all his wandering…  
And will never go away…_

* * *

That night, Frankie and Andrew were listening to "_Come Wander with Me_" on the tape recorder, as Frankie sung the song. As they were listening to the song, Andrew smiled, "You got beautiful chops, for an android."

"Chops. What do you mean?" Frankie asked.

He explained, "Chops. You know, a beautiful singing voice."

"Oh. Okay."

"Yeah, this will be big, singing this in my next record. I hope you do not mind that, since you and I are going away together."

"I hope so. Everyone does like me, but you're different, Andrew LaPierre. I like like you."

"I know, honey, I know… But still…"

He played back the song, and asked, "So, where did you hear it, and how did you learn the song?"

"What do you mean? It's the story of my love. I always loved you."

"Well, we'll think of something."

She asked him, "Do you still like like me?"

He said, "Oh, yes. But we're running short on time. It's getting late."

"When will you take me away?"

"Soon. We, uh, we have plenty of time. But I promise, after the last playback."

Just as they were relaxing, a new verse appeared on the track, as Frankie's voice sang out:  
_The Rayfords, they were brothers  
Four of them, tall and bold…  
And for one, I was chosen,  
with my love, still untold…_

_They heard of the wanderer…  
They heard that he loved me…  
They heard tha-._

Andrew turned it off and said, "That was still beautiful. Nice that you had such energy, for such a folk tune. I mean, why not Dayton, Cole Slaw, or the Rayfords… Put your own name in the song!"

Frankie asked, "My own song?"

"Every play you get a plug."

"Three-prong or-."

The bushes suddenly rustled, as the androids turned to the bushes. Out came a boy in black hair, in messy clothes, wearing a brown hat and holding a long rifle. Andrew asked, "Who's this bozo?"

Frankie replied, "This is Billy Rayford."

"One of the Rayford Brothers, huh? How did he know we were here?"

"He always comes here."

He said to her, picking her up, "Okay. Now, listen, why don't you go and pick up your things, and we'll go away, together. However, I need to have a word with this jerk."

She demanded, "You said you'd buy me things, Andrew LaPierre! Bells, and dresses, and fancy cars…"

He said, "Yeah, I did. But I'll tell you what, you wait here, and I'll talk to him."

Frankie grabbed him and cried, "NO! Not this time!"

He asked, "Not this time? Will you relax? You're with me now, Andrew LaPierre! And do me a favor, and not say my full name? It's weird to speak of me, in the third person."

He went to Billy, as Frankie waited. Andrew asked, "So, you're Billy Rayford?"

Billy said, "Yeah, that's me. You're the music man, ain't yas?"

Andrew nodded, "That's me. _The _music man, Andrew LaPierre."

Billy held up his rifle and said, "Hear the one who's been taken on after Frankie."

"Frankie? You mean her?"

"Don't lie! I heard you singing, and I heard you city folk sugar-talking her taking her to back to Norfolk."

"Norfolk?! You're nuts! I'm not going there."

"I'm taking you back to my brothers, and they know how to deal with your kind."

Andrew explained, armed with his guitar, "Look, kid, I don't know who you are, but I got agents, musical teachers, researchers, technicians, etc. I'm not causing you any trouble. And even if you take me, they know where I am, in every minute!"

He was at gunpoint, as Frankie called, "Billy Rayford?"

Billy turned to her, but Andrew, given the opportunity, swung his guitar and smashed it into his head. Billy dropped to the dirt, and Andrew started to punch rapidly at his face. Billy stopped moving and then Andrew kneeled up, seeing a shocked and terrified Frankie, was covered her mouth in fright.

_You killed Billy Rayford…  
bespoke unto me…  
Struck him down with his anger  
'neath the old willow tree_

His tape recorder was playing by itself, as he was trying to turn it off, but the song continued.  
_By the lake, where our love dwelled  
'neath an old willow tree  
You killed Billy Rayford  
'neath an old willow tree…_

He threw the tape recorder into the forest, smashing it into pieces. He turned to Frankie and angrily said, "Okay, what was that, and how did that recording get on tape?"

Frankie said "It's always been that way, Andrew LaPierre… Always… It's always been you."

She kissed him and said to her, "I'm sorry… I always loved you."

He said, "No, calm down. You were a bit shocked, so… What do you say? Would you like to come with me?"

She said, "Yes. But… If you run, they'll catch you."

Dogs were barking, as Andrew cried, "Man, we gotta split! We have to run!"

She stated, "Well, maybe if you didn't run, this time, and meet with them, things would be different."

He cried, "Well, what do _you _want to do? Play dead? Hah! You can, with ease, because you're just like me! Those Rayford Brothers are deprogrammers, and they'll dismantle me? Oh, no! Not Andrew LaPierre! Not for sure!"

She said, "But if I hid you, it'd be different."

"HIDE ME?! WHERE?"

"Somewhere where we can be together, always."

He took her hand and stated, "No-no-no, we gotta run away, away from those Dufort, er, Rayford Brothers. Now, come on. I've come too far and too fast to be buried here in this forest. COME ON!"

They started to run, as the barking dogs started to grow louder.

Minutes later, they were at a fork in the road. Frankie pleaded, "You don't understand, Andrew LaPierre! If you run, they will catch you! I mean it!"

He stated, "Well, we're not facing them, dead-on! I refuse to let these eggheads take me apart! We're leaving, right now, before they find their brother!"

She stopped, and felt sad. She responded, "No… It's too late… They already know…"

She sang to him:  
_They sought out their brother…  
And found him alone…  
They wept by the lakeside  
for a boy, hardly grown…_

She held his face, and sang again:  
_They wept by the lakeside  
and vowed that he must die…  
The wandering stranger-._

Andrew grasped her neck and slammed his hand onto her mouth and shouted, "**STOP IT! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! STOP SINGING THAT SONG!**"

Frankie said, "But it's _our _song!"

He barked, "No, it's not!"

She said, "It's always been our song, Andrew LaPierre. You can't take it from us. It belongs to us, and we belong to it, as us androids we…"

He shouted, "Then, take it back! I DON'T WANT IT! TAKE IT BACK!"

She said, "I can't. It's been used."

The dogs were getting closer, as Frankie said, "They're coming. You better stay with me, for safety. I'll hide you from sight, and avoid any drama."

Andrew stepped back and said, "No way. I'm getting out of here, away from them, and away from you!"

Frankie grabbed his arm and pleaded, "Don't run! NO! Don't run! Stay with me!"

Andrew pulled her, but she tripped down, onto the ground, with her knees in the dirt. He pleaded for her to come along, but she cried, "Don't run! Stay with me, Andrew LaPierre! It'll be different!"

Andrew growled, "ARGH! You know what?"

He dashed off, as Frankie called to him, "Don't run! Andrew LaPierre! I'll always love you!"

He stopped, as he called to her, "NO! I'm not staying!"

But his eyes widened, as she was dressed in black clothing, instantly. She was the same girl that was watching over the android, and pleaded, "Don't run… Please, don't run… I always loved you…"

He gasped, as he bespoke to her, "No, you get away from me, you freak!"

He ran away, disappearing into the forest, as he was being chased by the Rayford Brothers and their hounds. Frankie never bothered chasing him, as he was mourning over her loved one, the talented Andrew LaPierre.

Andrew, however, he was running for his life, running through the forest, and arrived at the music shop. He ran inside and then called, "HEY! Cole! Cole Slaw! You there?"

Cole was waiting, near the entrance, as he heard the noise. Cole said, "It's too late, you know…"

Andrew cried, "No, you don't understand! Help me! You have got to hide me! I'll pay you! ANYTHING! I'M ANDREW LAPIERRE! I'M WITH THE BIG BEAT! I DON'T WORK FOR THOSE PHONIES! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND? THEY DON'T WANT ME, THEY WANT SOMEBODY ELSE! I DON'T EVEN SING THAT SONG! LISTEN!"

He grabbed another guitar and strummed fast, singing incoherent. But then stopped, as Cole was walking to the entrance. He asked, "Cole! Hey, Cole Slaw, what's the matter with you? Will you listen to me? Come on! Where are you going? GET BACK HERE!"

He grabbed his shoulder and threw him down. He slammed his fists onto his neck and killed Cole Reyes. The dogs continued to bark, as Andrew panicked, as he was looking for a place to hide. He ducked behind a player piano, and hid from obscurity. But then, the piano started to place by itself. Andrew rolled out of the way, and ducked towards another piano. But a music box played, and he ran to stop the instruments from playing. An organ, a harpsichord, a harp, and even everything in the music shop were starting to play noises. He tried to stop the noise, but to no avail. The dogs were approaching, as the three Rayford Brothers approached the dead body of Cole Reyes. He was trapped! Andrew LaPierre was trapped! The Rayfords searched the entire music shop, with Andrew cornered and scared, as he was worried of what may happen to him, if they find him. But with no escape, and without a hiding spot, the android was trapped. He was about to run off, but his legs wouldn't move. He thought, "That song… Why would she play that song? Bespoke! She's not bespoke! She's-."

But as he was about to make his escape, panting heavily from the fear, and the continuous noise from the music shop…  
**BANG!  
**Andrew LaPierre was shot.

* * *

And so, Andrew LaPierre was buried in the spot where he died. The gravestone was etched by the Rayford Brothers. The lovelorn Frankie approached the grave of Andrew, and kneeled to the grave. She whispered, "Andrew LaPierre…"

She hummed "_Come Wander with Me_", quietly and silent, as she mourned for her lover, who is also an android… which the song fulfills what the song was about, as Frankie prays for Andrew.

* * *

_In retrospect, it may be said of Mr. Andrew LaPierre that he achieved his final dream of a performer: eternal top-name billing, not from the fleeting billboards of the entertainment world, but forever recorded among the folk songs of today… … …in the "**Tales of the Bizarre**"._

* * *

**_Miz-K Note: _**_This is a first time for me. This fic is fandom for the Nick Show, "I am Frankie", which is all about a girl who is an android, attempting to pass on as a human. I was intrigued by it, and decided to make a story out of it, and decided, why not? Just this once. And by the way, it counts as a Robot Fic in the Bizarre Tales 5-fic series.  
This fic is also a loose retelling of the final taped episode of the original "The Twilight Zone" series, starring Gary Crosby. The episode, named after the song, "Come Wander with Me", was made in May of 1964, about 55 years ago. However, most of it was exact, being that the main characters are androids from the former series, using Frankie and Andrew as the two main characters seem right._

_And now, to quote ANOTHER Nick show…_

* * *

**_Good night out there, wherever you are…  
(Count Duckula – Nick Show, acquired from the UK from 1988)_**


End file.
